Flotsam & Jetsam  What should have happened
by MrAndMrsMulholland
Summary: This is my version of episode 4x15. What would have happened if Kate did go snorkelling with Dutchy?
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

The Hammersley had arrived back in port to refuel after they had found the dead body of Albie Dumas. While Bomber and Charge were taking the body of the ship Mike had gone to Navcom to report on the situation. Kate had written her reports and decided to get some fresh air. She had seen dead bodies before, but this one, today, was a cruel reality of the fact that there were aggressive and dangerous men out in the world.

She stepped on deck and saw Bomber and Charge just lifting the body bag into a car. She sighed while she leaned back at the grey metal. The weather wasn't helping much to get over her gloomy mood. What was it that had Albie killed and more importantly why?

Kate had an idea, maybe it wasn't the smartest thing to do, but sitting around and waiting wasn't what she wanted to do. Maybe she could— Kate's thoughts were interrupted by Dutchy who also came on deck. She gave him a glance to see if he wanted something from her and got one in return. It looked like he would say something, something that would make her forget what she was thinking, so before he could say anything she said: "I was just out here, thinking…"

"Oh no," Dutchy teased her.

"What?" Kate asked, not understanding why he had said that.

"You've got that look on your face again. The last time you had that look you got yourself into trouble," Dutchy explained.

"Oh, it's not like that," she defended herself. "I was wondering…" she stammered.

"About?" Dutchy interrupted her.

Kate stepped away from Dutchy as to create a bit of space between them, not knowing if he would take her seriously. "What is so important about that boat?" she asked him.

Dutchy realized Kate wasn't just joking around so he thought for a second before he answered. "I think it's all about the sunken yacht," he answered.

Kate was happy he took her seriously, although his answer wasn't much help. She had already gotten that far. "Well, it's where it all started and so I was just—"

"Wondering," Dutchy finished her sentence, again teasingly.

"Yes," Kate exclaimed. "Wondering," she repeated him before she looked up at him. He was smiling and she couldn't help but smile at him as well. "It's not that deep out there. What would I find if I go snorkelling?" she asked him.

"Do we have time?" Dutchy asked while he looked at his watch.

"We?" Kate asked surprised.

"Yeah," Dutchy replied, letting her know he meant what he had said.

"About four hours," Kate replied. Since this was her original plan, to go snorkelling, she of course already knew how much time she had before she had to be back at the Hammersley. Having someone coming along wasn't part of her original plan, but could be very helpful.

Dutchy gave her a broad smile and turned around. "Shall we?" he said. Kate nodded and followed him back inside to get her swim gear. She started to like this idea a lot and maybe at the end of the day she would have some answers to boot.

While following Dutchy into the ship she was wondering if he was still wearing the same swimming shorts as he had done the last time the crew went for a swim. She chuckled out loud when thinking about how good he looked in them, and how she had sneaked a few glances away.

"Something funny X?" Dutchy asked while looking at her. Kate blushed, at a loss for words. She couldn't tell him what she had been thinking so instead she said: "I was just thinking how much fun this snorkelling trip is going to be!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Kate tied the upper part of her wetsuit around her waist, like Dutchy had done. He didn't give her much time to admire his swimming shorts, but the sight of his six pack wasn't bad either. She had to think of something else before he would realize what she was doing. With a wry smile she looked at the little boat he had found. It didn't look like much but it would have to do and it was the only thing they could rent right now. There wasn't much time and four hours would pass quickly.

"It looks like a bunch of termites holding hands, but we'll only need it for a couple of hours," Dutchy joked when he saw the worried look of the X. While she stepped on board he eyed her. She wore a swimsuit underneath her wetsuit but she would look great in a bikini too, Dutchy suddenly thought. If it had been a sexy one piece he wouldn't have minded as much but she wore this all-covering sports suit. Why couldn't she have worn something more sexy? He was sure she had something more suitable tucked away in her wardrobe. Maybe he just thought about it because having too much material underneath a wetsuit was a nuisance although he knew that wasn't his reason for thinking it.

Not much later they had left port and sailed for open waters. "What do you think we'll find?" Dutchy asked. It had been Kate's idea to go snorkelling, but now that they got closer to the bearings of the yacht he was getting more and more excited himself.

Kate shrugged. She had thought about it but couldn't really come up with a reasonable answer. "Don't know," she answered. "But whatever it is it must be valuable to Lara and her family," she added.

Kate pulled rank and told Dutchy to set course using the GPS while she would be at the helm. Dutchy didn't mind it, he was used being told what to do by her. He coordinated where they had to go and shifted back and forth from watching the GPS and Kate's back. "We're almost there," he announced. "You need to move left two degrees," he guided Kate.

Kate turned around to check for herself but Dutchy kept the GPS to himself. "Are you sure?" she asked. Dutchy gave her a cheeky grin. "What do you think? Of course I'm sure. You need to move two degrees left," he said again. Kate sighed. She only wanted to check for herself.

"We're here," Dutchy suddenly said. He got up and put the GPS next to the helm for Kate to see. There wasn't much room and he could feel her soft skin against his own. This wasn't good, he thought. She was his superior and the last thing he wanted was for her to recite the non fraternization rule book to him again.

Kate stopped the engines and wanted to drop the anchor but Dutchy was already doing that. The water was calm and looked nice. Quickly she pulled the top part of her suit on so they could explore the depth of the sea. Kate saw how Dutchy also put on his suit on and started fidgeting with his camera. Maybe they would find something they could show.

"Come on Dutchy. Let's go," she said enthusiastically while putting on her flippers. "Let's find out what's so special about that yacht." She looked at Dutchy who sat down on the edge of that boat. "I'll race you," he said before he rolled backwards into the water.

"Dutchy!" Kate exclaimed. "That isn't fair!" Quickly she finished putting on her flippers and got into the water. She saw Dutchy near the boat and he motioned for her to come closer. He pointed at the back of the boat where the lifeboat was missing. Kate nodded in acknowledgement. Something was strange about that. She swam around the boat and suddenly saw something shining on the bottom of the sea.

Dutchy followed Kate around the boat to see what was to be seen on the other side. He was surprised to see her going down to the bottom of the sea instead of looking at the boat. He followed her and saw her putting something in her wetsuit. He tapped her on her shoulder to get her attention. She turned around and motioned she was going up to the boat. He nodded. He would follow her in a while but first he wanted to take some photos.

Kate hung at the edge of the boat and looked down to see if Dutchy was following her. When he didn't come up right away she decided to put her discovery in the boat before going down again. If it wasn't to find anything else it was to go snorkelling a bit longer. There probably wouldn't be another opportunity anytime soon.

Dutchy took a few more photo's of some interesting things on the boat when he saw Kate appear again. She was an amazing woman. The man who would be her husband was going to be a very lucky guy. He didn't want to but he kept on looking at her body like he was looking at a mermaid. There was something magical about her. Before he went up again he took a picture of her. He would make sure she would never see it, nor anyone else, it would be his personal little hidden treasure.

When they were both on deck again Kate turned to Dutchy. "Look," she said while she showed him what she had found.

"Gold?" he asked bewildered. "So that's why Lara's brother-in-law didn't want Alby Dumas snooping around," Dutchy said.

It all became clear to Kate. The reason why Alby was murdered, probably who had done it and why there hadn't been a mayday call. What she didn't understand was how Lara and her family had been involved with gold in the first place.

"You think there is more gold?" Dutchy asked pulling Kate from her thoughts.

"Oh yes, I think so," she answered a bit startled.

"We'd better radio Navcom to come and guard this spot. There is either more down there to be found for someone to come and collect it or it's already gone and the person or persons forgot about this one bar," he thought out loud pointing to the gold bar Kate was holding.

"Yes, very good. You can do that and I'll get us back home," she ordered. It got her a 'yes ma'am' from Dutchy who then started to laugh. "What?" she asked, not understanding what was so funny.

"Nothing," He answered in between two laughs.

Kate couldn't stop being in command, Dutchy thought. Even if they weren't on an official navy ship she was the one to quickly take control. He would show her that he had enough initiative and great leadership as well so Dutchy picked up the radio and called in. For a moment he listened to the static noise which he got for an answer. This 'showing off' wasn't working yet but he wasn't defeated. Dutchy knocked on the radio, checked the cords before he let out a growl. "Argh," he sighed.

Kate turned to Dutchy to see what he was doing with the radio. When they crossed eyes he gave her an apologetic look. "It looks fine but it's not working," he said to answer her questioning look. "That's fine," she said sighing away a little irritation. It wasn't Dutchy's fault the radio wasn't working so she wasn't blaming him but Kate was annoyed that they were still about an hour away from port without a way to let anyone know where they were. "I'll just get us back home as fast as I can. We still have time to contact someone when we reach port," she added.

There was nothing but water ahead of them although they had passed one or two islands which were a fair distance away. "Keep trying that radio or you might try my mobile," Kate suggested.

Dutchy nodded in agreement. He had thought of that himself. With a sigh he tried the radio another time, already knowing he wouldn't get a response so he turned around to get Kate's bag. "You're sure I can look into it?" he asked.

Dutchy waited until Kate nodded before he opened the cotton bag. Seeing what she had in her handbag he understood why she didn't mind. There was nothing really personal in it besides her keys, mobile, her wallet and the case for her sunglasses. He wondered if he would ever get some personal insight to his XO. He grabbed the phone but with it he also got a small tube out. "Strawberry lip gloss?" he said when he looked at the extra tube in his hand.

Kate blushed. "What's wrong with strawberries?"

"Nothing," Dutchy said. "I happen to like strawberries."

"I don't think we'll be in range," he said out loud, flipping open her mobile to check. Dutchy pressed some buttons and had to admit he was right although he feared Kate's reaction. She had sounded a bit offensive with the non-working radio. Before he told her he tried to hold the pink device in different directions, trying to get a signal, but when he saw Kate's eyes he knew that it was futile to deny it any longer.

Kate started to laugh. "I hadn't thought it would work," she chuckled. "It's another forty-five minutes before we're back in port so let's just make the best out of it," she said hopeful.

Dutchy moved to stand next to Kate. "OK," he said mischievously. "You know about my history but I hardly know anything about you so start, you only have forty-five minutes."

Kate gave him a shocked look. This was not what she had thought would happen. "I said make the best out of it. Not interrogating me," she joked trying not to look at Dutchy.

"Interrogating? That sounds very negative X," he said. "I was just wondering about where you've been posted before you came on the Hammersley or what made you decide to get into the navy and work hard for little pay," he tried to explain himself a bit.

Before he got any answer from Kate the motor started to hiccup and then die all together. They didn't have to say anything to know they were thinking the same thing. They were in big trouble at open sea without any radio if the motor wouldn't start up again soon.

"I'll have a look," Dutchy said before he wanted to check the motor but Kate touched his shoulder and shook her head while looking at the fuel indicator. "I don't think it's the motor. I think we're out of fuel," she said.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

"The fuel line has snapped. There's no way I'm going to be able to fix that without the right tools," Dutchy sighed. He looked at Kate and saw her worried face. "I guess you didn't let anyone know where we went," he wondered while he knew the answer. They had left the Hammersley as quickly as possible when they had the opportunity to go diving. He had changed into his swimming shorts in less than a minute and then had waited outside Kate's cabin. From there they had left the ship without seeing anyone else.

With her hand Kate was shielding her eyes against the sun and looked around for other ships. She couldn't see any at the horizon which meant they had to wait until someone showed up and would be civil enough to stop and check them out. "Great," she exhaled. With an Irritated sigh she took the radio in hand and pressed some buttons. "Mayday, mayday. Can anyone here us?" she said hoping against all hopes.

Dutchy looked at the ocean. He hoped a ship would show up soon since they hadn't brought anything, not even some water, which he regretted now most of all. The sun would reach its highest point in about two hours and it was already hot on deck. "What do you want to do?" he asked Kate.

Kate frowned at Dutchy's last question. "What do I want to do? I want to go home and report what we've found. I want to—" she answered but Dutchy held up his hand in defence.

"I meant right now. Do you want to wait until someone comes by and picks us up or wait for another two hours before anyone at the Hammersley misses us and start looking. Oh add another couple of hours to that last idea since they don't know where to start looking." He wasn't looking forward to sit and wait. Although, spending some time with his XO, cooped up in the small confines of their little boat wasn't an option he wouldn't really mind either. _No, I shouldn't think like this, it will only get me into trouble_ he thought while quickly looking down to see if his body wasn't betraying his thoughts.

"If you'd ask me the best option is to swim to that island," he pointed into the direction where they came from. "I can't swim that far!" Kate said shocked when she saw the distance they had to swim to reach land. "Well, we don't have many more options," Dutchy said. He remembered the last time they had this same discussion. They were on a pontoon near the coast and she had told him she couldn't swim that far. He had then suggested he would swim and she would stay on the pontoon but this time he had a gut feeling it wouldn't be right to leave her behind. Maybe another crazy copper would show up and start waving around his gun.

"We have no food, no water and no means to get in touch with anyone. We've just got you and me here. I'd say we swim to the island. We've got flippers this time and I'll help you to get there, I promise," Dutchy said.

Kate looked towards the island again and sighed. It really seemed too far away. Even with flippers on, it would be a long swim and if they would reach the island there was no guarantee there would be anyone to help them so maybe it was the best option to stay on this boat and just wait.

"Look at the island, it has trees and there are rocks so most likely there's water to be found and I'll bet there's food too. I really think we should go there. Trust yourself Kate. You can do it, you can swim that far," he encouraged her. Kate looked Dutchy up and down, briefly stopping at his muscled arms and belly. Could she rely on him getting her to the island? She knew she trusted him with her life, but was it enough? "OK," she finally said. He put his hands on her shoulders and squeezed them reassuringly. "We're going to be ok X" he said softly. The touch of his hands gave her the shivers, resulting in an odd look from Dutchy. "You cannot be cold X," he said with a grin.

Before he could say more about it, she changed the subject. "Maybe it is time you call me Kate," she said. "We spend so much time together outside work, that it sounds silly to have you calling me X all the time." "But only when we're not working" she added quickly. He nodded his approval. "Ok, so call me Dylan."

The situation felt odd for both of them, knowing this was a turning point in the way they behaved towards each other. Both felt relieved, but also awkward. Quickly Kate changed back into XO mode again. "Before we go we've got to drop the anchor and do we have anything to write on to let people know where we're going?" she started the logistical questions.

Dutchy only shrugged. "I didn't bring anything besides my wallet and mobile and I didn't see a pen or a piece of paper in your bag either. We can't bring the mobiles though, they don't like to swim," he joked.

Kate thought for a second. She didn't like the idea of going to the island with no communication device even though there wasn't anything to bring in the first place. "I'm going to take my mobile," she said. "It may sound strange but what if it survives the swim and we can get it to work there. If you don't mind we could leave your mobile here and put a text message on it. When someone finds the boat and touches your mobile it shows up and tells them to go looking for us on the island," Kate suggested.

Dutchy ran out of other options and agreed to the proposal. Swiftly he typed a message and then put the mobile on the controls, hoping someone would find it soon. After that he geared up again, putting Kate's mobile in the little sack with the camera. "Are you ready?" he asked her while he sat down on the edge of the boat. Kate nodded, but Dutchy knew she wasn't too sure about their adventure.

An hour after they had left the boat Kate started to feel her muscles ache. The boat had changed into a little dot on the water but the island still looked as far away as it had done when they were still on board. _You can do it_ she thought to herself. _ You mustn't give up!_ She looked at Dutchy who swam not far away from her. "How are you doing?" she asked.

Dutchy only nodded and indicated he was fine. By looking at the distance they had already crossed and the distance still ahead of them he indicated it would take them another two hours before they would reach land and that was if they would keep the same pace. They had to save all their energy for swimming. When he saw Kate try and speak again he came closer to her and said: "Don't talk, just swim."

Kate did what Dutchy said and swam for over an hour when she thought she had to rest for a bit. While she slowed down Dutchy kept on going and in no time there was a distance between them. "Dylan wait!" she yelled as loud as she could but he didn't hear her. The only thing to do was to swim faster and catch up with him.

Dutchy stopped and looked at the island, which came closer now, before he turned around again. He was shocked to see Kate so far behind him. He hadn't even noticed her not being around. Dutchy waited for her to get to him and when she did she put her arms around his neck and hang on to him.

"Why didn't you wait?" she asked, panting.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I guess I'm tired too and went on my automatic pilot. I'll slow down now and keep close to you but we need to keep on moving," he said.

He wished he could offer her a little break but the energy was much better spent in moving. "I think it's another half hour, forty-five minutes," he estimated. He felt Kate sigh before she let go of him. She nodded and started swimming. "If I ever reach land I'm going to kill you," she whispered. If they weren't where they were now he would have laughed but Dutchy knew better and started swimming as well.

Dutchy kept close to Kate but realized they were slowing down quickly. In the end she was barely getting closer to the island and when he saw her head go down he knew all her energy had drained from her body. He swam towards her and wrapped one arm around her before starting to swim again. Like this they went slowly but steadily.

When Dutchy finally felt land underneath his feet, he dragged Kate onto the beach. He laid her there while he removed his flippers. They had made it but Kate was totally out and he himself hadn't much energy left either. He stood tall on the beach while looking at the ocean. He started to regret his idea of coming to the island since it looked like a deserted one. What had they done? How was anyone going to find them there? He sat down next to Kate who hadn't moved yet and sighed. "Help."


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Mike sat down in his cabin. He was worried sick about Kate, who had been missing for a couple of hours now. Earlier today he had come back from Navcom to find out that everyone was present besides Kate and Dutchy and no one could tell him where they could be. First he just thought they had gone into town. They did have a four hour shore leave but when it was time to sail they still weren't back and that's when he started to worry.

Mike was glad Kate and Dutchy got on a bit better nowadays but every time the two of them went somewhere together they ended up in some sort of trouble. From his bookshelf Mike grabbed his edition of Homer's Odyssee, in which he had hidden a picture of him and Kate. They looked like an average couple even if he knew there weren't. Their relationship was on hold until Navcom would come up with a suitable replacement CO. Looking at Kate in the picture he just hoped there was a reasonable explanation for her absence. She didn't even have to be with Dutchy so he couldn't blame him, yet, but if he had anything to do with any trouble he would make sure Dutchy would pay.

Mike was pulled away from his thoughts when he heard his phone ring. "Yes," he said.

"Commander White on the line for you Sir," RO informed him.

"Thank you Robert, you can put her through," he said. Mike put away the picture as if Maxine would be able to see it from the other side of the line. He had just closed the book when he heard a click on the line. "Maxine," he said hopeful to get any news.

"Mike," she quickly replied. "Have you heard of your XO and buffer yet?" she asked.

Mike sighed. "Nothing," he answered. "I am starting to get worried something happened to one or both of them," he added.

"It's not like them to be late so I wanted to inform you that we called in the police. They wanted to know if you have any idea in which direction they should start looking?" Maxine asked.

Mike shrugged and looked at the ceiling of his cabin. "I don't know," he answered truthfully. "They could be in an accident or—I don't know," he said frantically looking for an answer.

"If they had been in an accident we would have heard by now Mike. Don't think the worst. Could Kate be looking for Lara Strauss?" Maxine opted.

Again Mike shrugged. Kate had formed some sort of relationship with this Lara and he knew Kate was worried when she was abducted, but if she really had information on her whereabouts Mike didn't believe she would just take off and investigate herself.

"Are you still there Mike?" Maxine asked. "You know what. Let me know if you think of something and in the meantime I'll inform the police with whatever information I have," she suggested.

Mike sighed. "Let us help look. Let us sail out," he begged. He got a laugh from Maxine in return.

"You know as well as I do that an XO or a buffer are ships stoppers and you are missing both of them. The HMAS Kingston is patrolling and I'm sure they're capable enough to do their job. If they find anything I'll let you know, I promise," Maxine said sternly.

Mike hung up just before he heard a knock on his door. "Yes," he said just before he saw Swain walk in.

"I talked to that copper mate of mine and he told me that they had a man come in about an hour ago. He rents out boats and he claims one of them was stolen by a young couple. They were bound to bring the boat back three hours ago," Swain told Mike.

Mike didn't see what this had to do with his missing crewmembers but he decided to listen patiently to what else Swain could tell him.

"Well, he described the couple as a tall blond man, and a somewhat tiny woman. He thought it was a bit odd they didn't have any luggage so he thinks they were just going for a swim, or spend some time alone together," Swain said. "The rental bloke also said they looked like an obviously happily married couple and that the guy couldn't keep his eyes of the woman," Swain added, seeing Mike flinch after the last bit.

"That doesn't sound like Kate and Dutchy," Mike quickly said trying to swallow away a weird feeling. "They don't look like 'an obviously happily married couple', do they?" he asked a bit unsure.

"No!" Swain answered promptly. "They don't. Just to be on the safe side and in case it could be Dutchy and the X I sent my mate some pictures of them to run by the boat guy. He'll let me know as soon as he has anymore news," Swain continued.

"A boat," Mike thought out loud. "Why would they rent a boat? What were they planning on doing?"

Swain shrugged. "Maybe they went back to the sunken yacht to find more clues on Lara's disappearance," he said.

Suddenly it all made sense and before Swain could leave the cabin Mike had grabbed the phone. "RO get me Navcom," he ordered. He looked at Swain and smiled. "You have great ideas my friend," he said proudly.

"Maxine," he said, talking into the mouth piece of the phone. "I think Dutchy and Kate have rented out a boat and have gone back to the sunken yacht. Can you ask Lieutenant Commander Curry to go and have a look there?" he said enthusiastically.

Mike knew for sure he would get his crewmembers back within the hour but a clearing of the throat on the other side of the line stopped his exaltation.

"We know they rented a boat and Lieutenant Commander Curry has just been to that place. They're not there Mike. Not Kate, not Dutchy and not a boat. They're officially reported missing at sea at this point."


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

After they had gotten out of the water Kate had dragged herself towards a tree where she was still sitting. Dutchy had wanted to help her getting there but she had refused it. Maybe because she was angry at him for his ridiculous idea or maybe she was just stubborn about getting help, he didn't know, but Dutchy had decided to let her be for a while. Instead of helping Kate he decided to forage for some food and something to drink.

He explored the beach to see if there was something to eat anywhere but there wasn't much to explore so it didn't take him long to find coconut trees. Probably the hardest thing was to find a good tree to climb, one in which he could show off his talents a bit. After his stupid decision to go swimming he really wanted to make up to Kate and find her something to eat.

Quite easily Dutchy reached the top of a palm tree where he had seen a few coconuts hidden behind some big leaves. Like a proper caveman he started hitting the nuts with a big stick he had brought along. "Dinner is served in thirty minutes," he yelled to Kate who was still sitting against another tree not far away from him.

From the top of the tree he had a nice view of where Kate was sitting. Too bad she still had her wetsuit zipped up completely, otherwise he would have been able to catch some cleavage. He sighed – catching himself thinking improper thoughts about his superior yet again. Besides, thinking about it some more, he wasn't even sure he would be able to see something at all – with her wearing her sports swimsuit underneath the wetsuit.

"Be careful Dylan," Kate warned him from below. "The wind is picking up. I think we're going to get a bit of a storm. Don't take too much risk. Our breakfast will be blown on the beach by the morning. One or two will be enough for now," she said while looking up. Kate didn't want Dutchy to know she was a bit scared he would fall down and break his neck. He had looked tired as well and even though he had rested for a bit she could see he wasn't his old strong self yet.

"Don't you worry," Dutchy yelled back before he jumped down the last few meters. He had successfully knocked down two nuts and he agreed with Kate that it was plenty for now. Another thing he had to agree on was the wind, it really was picking up. When he was up in the tree he could feel it and the sea started looking more and more aggressive.

"Aren't you glad we're not swimming anymore?" he said while he handed Kate one of the nuts. She looked at him and shook her head with a frown. "You must be kidding." Dutchy pointed at the sea and shrugged. "Well, I'm glad I'm not swimming anymore."

Kate sighed. "I wasn't talking about swimming. I'm not going swimming again for a _long_ time. No, I was talking about this," she said while shaking the coconut in front of his face. "How do you think I'm going to get anything nutritious from it?" she asked him.

Dutchy smiled and bend forwards to get to the little bag he had brought from the boat. He showed her his Swiss knife. "Using this perhaps?" he teased her before he sliced the skin of one of the nuts revealing the brown, hairy inner part of the nut. He then punctured the top and gave it to Kate. "Have a bit to drink," he offered.

"Thanks," Kate said. She didn't really care for coconut but she knew it was better than becoming completely insane after drinking salty sea water or even worse, dehydrating if they wouldn't be able to find any fresh water. After a few sips she handed the nut to Dutchy. "You can have the rest," she said. "I actually hate coconuts. "

Kate quickly looked at Dutchy, who was now beating one of the nuts against a rock, before taking his bag and opening it. With high hopes she took her mobile out of it and pressed a few buttons. To her surprise it switched. Even though the screen wasn't working properly it should still work if there was a signal. She dialled the number of the Hammersley and held up her phone in the air hoping it would show something but nothing happened. There was no signal.

"It's not working, is it?" Dutchy asked when he split the coconut. "It would be too good to be true if it was," he added. "No, it's actually still working. The only thing we need now is a signal and we would be able to call the Hammersley to come and rescue us," she said still looking hopefully at her mobile. "If not, I'll built you a little house and we can pretend this is the blue lagoon, just like the movie," Dutchy laughed.

Kate frowned, trying to remember the movie he had just mentioned. "Is that what you want? Living here the rest of our lives, wandering around aimlessly, making a baby and then in the end die at sea? Well, excuse me, but I've got other plans!" she teased him. "Such as?" he teased her back. "isn't it what all women want, a baby with a gorgeous man?" Kate swallowed hard, not knowing what to say or where to look. By now her face must have become the colour of beetroots.

Instead of replying Kate took half of the coconut from Dutchy and forced a bit into her mouth with a foul face. "What has the coconut done to you to show a face like that!" Dutchy laughed. Kate shook her head. "I just don't like coconuts, can't stand the smell of them." Dutchy looked confused. "Why?" he questioned. She blushed a bit, but decided that admitting it wouldn't hurt. "I once had a boyfriend who smelled like coconut oil all the time, and he turned out to be a bastard. Now I just find the smell repulsive." Dutchy laughed deeply. "I'll remember that if I ever wanted to buy you chocolates."

"Besides a knife, do you have anything else hidden in your bag?" she asked him somewhat hopeful. Dutchy started to laugh. "Like an inflatable boat or a sat phone. Don't you think I would have let you know by now?" he teased her. It made Kate laugh which Dutchy liked. She finally started to look a bit like she was getting her strength back. "Try and eat some coconut and then we'll try and start a fire if that's fine with you," he said before he took a bite of his own piece of coconut. "I promise that tomorrow I'll find you a banana to eat."

A few hours later Dutchy proudly looked at the fire he had get started. Like a real alpha male he liked protecting and taking care of Kate. While gathering food and later wood to start a fire, he had taken off his wetsuit, walking around the beach in nothing more than his swimming shorts. While pretending to keep her eyes on the horizon on the lookout for ships, she had to admit that most of the time she was watching Dutchy's perfectly-formed arse.

Kate herself had never taken off her wetsuit and when the sun had gone down Dutchy had also put his back on to keep him a bit warmer. If it wasn't for the stupid non-fraternization rule he have would put his arms around Kate and they would have been able keep each other warm that way.

Kate held her hands towards the fire to warm up a bit. Hidden in her wetsuit she still had the gold bar which she had taken along. By now it was pushing against a rib but if she wanted to get it out of her suit she had to open it which meant getting colder than she already was.

"Is there something wrong?" Dutchy frowned when he saw Kate wriggling around. "I now know why they melt gold bars and make them into jewellery," she answered. "What?" Dutchy asked. Why did women never give straight answers. "I took the gold with me. It's in my suit and it's bothering me," Kate sighed. "Then get it out," Dutchy suggested. To him that was the only logical thing to do. He wondered why she had taken the gold in the first place though.

Quickly Kate unzipped her wetsuit, giving Dutchy a view of how cold she really was, and got the gold bar out before zipping it up again. "I didn't want to leave it on the boat," she answered the questioning look from Dutchy.

He looked at the gold for a moment and suddenly had too many questions again. Who, in these days, had gold bars on board of a yacht? It just had to be dodgy. This one bar probably was one of a whole load and Lara and her husband couldn't be as innocent as they had seemed at first. "What do you think? Did Lara's husband try to save the gold instead of his wife or did something happen to him to prevent him from rescuing her?" he thought out loud.

Kate shrugged. She hoped that he hadn't just left Lara although she knew people could become greedy if there was a lot of money involved. Still she hoped a human life was worth more. It gave her cold shivers to think that Martin Strauss had left his wife alone at sea just like that. "I somehow hope something happened to him. I don't know what to think of him if he left his wife out at sea in a storm," she answered.

Dutchy reached for his little bag again and got out his camera. "Look," he said while he showed her one of the pictures he had taken. "There was a life-boat but it must have been removed before the yacht sunk. Let's assume Lara's husband took it and removed the gold from the yacht."

Kate took the camera from Dutchy to have a better look. She was scanning back and forth through the photos when she saw the last picture Dutchy had taken. "What is this?" she asked.

Dutchy suddenly realized which picture Kate was looking at. "Huh?" he said trying to play dumb. He did lean towards Kate to see if he was right about which picture she was looking at. "Can you give me the camera? I can't see which picture you're looking at," he lied. The only thing he needed was to get his camera back so he could either delete it or remove the battery or some other desperate act.

Kate saw the flustered look on Dutchy's face and knew right there and then he knew which picture she was talking about. "It's the last picture you took," she said teasingly. He leaned in closer to have a look, like he didn't know what she was talking about. To tease him even more, she held the camera as far away from his reach as possible. "You know which one I'm talking about," she said trying not to laugh.

Dutchy gave it one more try to get his camera back. He held out his arm to grab it but unexpectedly lost his balance. Kate shrieked underneath him when he fell on top of her. Quickly he got his camera and saw the picture. "Oh that one," he joked while leaning on top of her.

Both of them noticed how close their faces were, and she saw his face come even closer. _Stuff regulations_ she suddenly thought. Unfortunately, Dutchy thought exactly the opposite and rolled off her to gain some decorum and to think of anything than Kate. _Think ugly, think a football game, think stuck on a deserted island with the boss _ he tried to make himself think. _Kate half naked on a deserted island_. When he thought that, he knew he had lost.

Kate sat back up to wipe some of the sand from her wetsuit. "I want a copy of that last picture so don't you dare to delete it!" she said with a laugh. She felt her heart race and knew her face was a couple of shades more red than usual. Luckily it was dark so Dutchy couldn't see how her body was reacting. "I hate the wind," she moaned, trying to get the conversation in a different direction. Dutchy didn't react and instead was fidgeting with his camera.

"I think I'm going to sleep, or at least try to," she announced before curling up near the fire.

Dutchy saw Kate trying to find a comfortable position which was almost impossible on this beach. He had to do something or she would keep him awake all night as well. Before he crawled towards her he looked around as if to make sure nobody saw what he was about to do. _Stuff the regulations_ he thought. _If they'll find us like this I'll take all the blame_.

"Lean against me," he offered, spreading his arms. Without any hesitation she got closer and softly pressed her body against his. "Sleep well," she whispered. Dutchy caressed her arm and thought about what a wonderful treat this was; Kate in his arms with nobody to stop them. Without thinking he kissed her softly on the top of her head. Maybe being stuck here wasn't too bad.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Mike ran up the stairs to the bridge where a few crewmembers were working. "Ah Charge," he said when he saw his friend and colleague. "Have you been able to rent a boat?" he asked. Charge nodded and leaned against the consol. "Well sort of. I called a friend and we can borrow his boat for as long as we need," he answered. "Great. I've got a meeting at Navcom but as soon as I come back we can leave so make sure everything is ready by then," Mike ordered before he left.

Mike hadn't slept one single bit. The only thing he could think of was his two crewmembers, one very valuable crewmember and one he hoped would one day be more than a crewmember, being lost at sea. It pained him that the Hammersley was kept out of the search. That's why he had decided to go searching himself with a rented boat. Together with Swain and Charge he was plotting out a search area when he was called in to come to Navcom. Maxine wanted to give him an update on the situation.

A bit annoyed about having to show up at Navcom he entered Maxine's office. She let him sit on one side of her desk, pretending she didn't see his irritated look. "I'll be honest with you Mike," she started in a serious way. "Lieutenant McGregor and Petty Officer Mulholland are still missing," she said.

Mike hadn't expected any other news. If Kate had been found he would have heard by now.

"This morning lieutenant commander Curry found a boat. It had drifted to the coast and was found stuck in the mangroves," Maxine said in a professional voice.

Mike gave her a hopeful look. "Yes," he said impatiently.

"The boat was deserted but we can certainly say that it was the boat Lieutenant McGregor and Petty Officer Mulholland rented. Lieutenant commander Curry found a woman's bag and there was a mobile phone, which turned out to be Petty officer's Mulholland's. They left a message on it which stated they swam towards an island," Maxine informed him.

Mike nodded. This was something he didn't know yet. "So have they searched that island? Do they know where they are?" he asked, forgetting his irritation and now sounding hopeful.

Maxine gave him an apologetic look and continued: "Like I said the boat had been drifting. Because of the storm last night the anchor line snapped so we don't know which island they meant. There are several islands in that area which we all need to check. More serious is the fact that we don't know _when_ exactly they decided to go swimming and _if_ they reached land before the storm hit."

Mike was speechless. What was Maxine trying to tell him? That Kate and Dutchy could have drowned? That they didn't know where to start looking?

"How many patrol boats are searching in the area?" he demanded to know.

"HMAS Kingston has been tasked to search the islands. Again, I'll let you know when I've got any news considering your XO and buffer," Maxine promised but Mike didn't think it was enough. He had to give it one more try. "Let me help search in any way possible Maxine," he begged. "They are very valuable to my team. We can't sit around and do nothing. You can't make us do that," he emphasized.

"I knew you would ask," pausing a bit and looking at Mike, "but without an XO and a buffer you know what my answer should be. That's why I ordered some maintenance troops to come and check out any problem the Hammersley might have. I understand you had troubles with your radio and an extra check of the engines wouldn't hurt either," she said. Without waiting for an answer Maxine continued: " I guess you'll have some paperwork to catch up to. It looks like you're too busy Mike. Leave the searching to people who have a complete crew and are more than able to do their jobs," she finished. She made it very clear it was the final thing she wanted to say about the subject.

Maxine looked at Mike and knew he wasn't going to take whatever she had just said without a battle but to her surprise he didn't say anything. He was planning something, she knew that look on his face. "I'm serious Mike. Don't do anything stupid like searching on your own. The police, the navy and coast watch are all searching. I want you to promise me you stay out of it," she said sternly.

Mike dropped his shoulders in defeat. "I don't like this," he sulked. "You're shutting me out and keeping me on shore for maintenance but I know it's just to make sure I won't leave," he said now sounding more angry. "You'd better keep me informed," he said before he stormed out of Maxine's office.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Dutchy woke up, realizing they were still on the beach on a deserted island. The fire had gone out during the night and with a quick look he saw that the storm had passed without leaving too much damage behind. Kate was still cuddled up, sleeping against his body, making cute noises. She had a smile on her face which made him happy.

Kate subconsciously knew she was about to wake up but she was enjoying this too much. She was dreaming about sleeping with this gorgeous man. How he had ended up in her bed she couldn't remember and that didn't matter either. Kate loved listening to the beating of his heart. She let her hand roam around his chest. Apparently he didn't want her to because he started to move a bit. She had to do something to make him stop before he would get out of bed and leave her all alone. Kate hooked her leg around his and rolled on top of him a bit more. His body reacted almost instantly

and Kate knew she had done the right thing. He liked it!

Again she let her hand roam around his chest but this time she felt something. It was like there was a zipper which hadn't been there before. When had this man put on some clothing, didn't they just have a great night, exploring each other's bodies? With one hand she started unzipping the material.

"No way, Kate," Dutchy said, grabbing her hand and stopping her from unzipping his wetsuit. In the last minute Kate had changed from a cute sleeping woman into a more lusty one and he hadn't done anything to encourage her. "Come on Kate, wake up!" he said before he poked her.

With a painful scream Kate sat up and looked around. She was on a beach and heard laughing behind her. "You poked me. That wasn't funny," she said when she saw Dutchy.

"You tried to undress me, that wasn't funny either," Dutchy lied. He couldn't confess that he wouldn't have minded for her to continue. Kate started to blush and tried to look away. Slowly she got up and walked away from him.

Kate faced the ocean and tried to let her breathing become normal again. What would Dutchy think of her? She had started to undress him! She wanted to forget the thought of that, simply because what had happened wasn't possible. She was his boss.

There were no ships in sight and Kate started to feel hopeless. She had made a fool of herself but the worst problem was being stuck on this island. The last thing she wanted was to grow old here. She had many other plans but for them she had to go back to port, back to civilization.

Dutchy walked towards Kate and stood next to her. "Don't feel bad about what just happened. You were asleep, probably dreaming of this wonderful man. I just had to stop you and wake you up," he said. Kate looked at him and shrugged. "I'm sorry," she sighed.

There was an awkward silence before Dutchy started talking again: "They must have missed us by now and no doubt they're looking." Kate nodded. That's what she wanted to believe although why hadn't they found them yet?

"Hey," Dutchy said to get her attention. "I promised you some bananas. Well, at least let me try and find you something else to eat than coconut," he smiled. Kate shrugged. "Shouldn't we stay on the beach just in case there's a boat coming?" she asked.

Dutchy hadn't thought about that. He had realized he was getting hungry. Quickly he looked around and then nodded. "You can stay on the beach, get the fire going again, while I'll look for some food," he suggested. Kate hadn't any other plan although being left on the beach on her own wasn't something she looked forward to. "Be quick. Don't stay away to long and don't get yourself into trouble," she ordered. "Yes mum" he said laughing, earning a shove from Kate.

It didn't take Dutchy long to return with some bananas and papayas which he dropped near the fire. "If I had known it was so easy to find these I would have done this yesterday," Dutchy said, looking down at the fruit.

Kate smiled and took a banana. "Just tell me there isn't a fruit stall around the corner with an owner who has a phone to use," she laughed. To her surprise Dutchy nodded and said: "He was very friendly. I managed to call Navcom and told them where we are. Since they were already searching for us Commander White said it wouldn't take long for the Hammersley to show up."

Dutchy took a banana himself and started eating while Kate was looking flabbergasted. Was she seriously believing his joke? "The guy from the fruit stall was amazed when I told him we swam all the way to the island. He invited us to come for dinner tonight," he stretched his story a bit to see how Kate would react. She frowned and shook her head. "You're terrible you know," she said. "You shouldn't tell lies to your boss," she added.

Dutchy tried to keep a straight face. Her last sentence made him think. If she didn't want to hear lies he could dare her to play a game of truth and dare. It wasn't like they were going to be rescued soon and this was a perfect way for him to get to know Kate a little bit better. "Truth or dare," he said, facing Kate.

"What!" Kate exclaimed. "If we play truth or dare you will know for sure I'm not lying," he joked. "Do you have any other suggestions for passing time on this island?" he asked her. Kate sighed before she took the final bite of her banana. "OK," she said secretly enjoying this moment where she could ask him some personal questions. "You start," she added.

Dutchy nodded. "Well then. Truth or dare?" he asked. "Truth," Kate answered as soon as he had finished the last letter of the word. "Are you in love with someone right now?" he asked. He saw Kate's expression on her face and knew the answer was yes but she didn't say anything. "Come on Kate. This was an easy question since you only have to say 'yes' or 'no'. Are you in love?" he asked again.

Kate felt trapped. This was such a trick question and Dylan didn't even realize it. Yes she was in love but it was a forbidden relation so she was almost inclined to say no, although that didn't feel right. "It's complicated. I _think _I'm in love but I'm not a hundred percent sure," she finally answered. Before Dylan could ask her anything else she looked at him and said: "Truth or dare."

Dutchy could slap himself, he should have asked that question differently. He smiled at Kate trying to read her mind. He wanted to know more about her love life but first he had to decide on what to choose himself. "I think I'm going for a dare," he said.

Kate chuckled. "Build me a hut so I'll have a roof over my head tonight." She thought this was the best thing ever to ask him. He would have to do some physical stuff and she could watch him at the same time. Then, when he was finished they had a place to stay for the night or at least they would be busy until any rescue party would show up.

Dutchy stood up extending his hand to Kate. "Only if you help me," he said. He looked around spotting a good place to build their hut. Because of the storm there was enough 'building material' scattered around the beach. It wouldn't be too hard to get something together. "Another thing," he said cheekily. "While building we continue the game. I can build and talk at the same time."

Kate agreed and they both started to work. They both stripped down their wetsuit before they put branches together and collected leaves. "I want a dare," Kate said, putting down a branch. It was a risk she had to take but it was better than getting the next question about her love life, she thought.

"I dare you to— I dare you to tell me the name of the guy you _think_ you are in love with," he said.

Kate shook her head, sighed and dropped to the beach. She couldn't tell him. Actually she didn't have to tell him. This wasn't a truth question but if she wasn't going to tell the truth she had to come up with a name pretty quickly. "I can't tell you," she answered instead.

Dutchy looked at Kate. "Punishment," he said before he picked her up and flung her over his shoulder. "Dylan, put me down! Dylan!" Kate shrieked. "Are you going to tell me?" he asked while he walked to the ocean. "No I'm not now put me down," Kate demanded. "I'll put you down, just wait," Dutchy teased.

Kate fell the cold water all around her after Dutchy had thrown her in. He was standing close by, smiling. Kate had to admit, it was funny. She smiled as well before she splashed him, making sure he would be wet from top to bottom.

They fooled around in the water for a while before finishing the hut. Kate admired Dutchy's perfect body while he tied some branches together and putting big leaves on top of them to make a roof. In the meantime Kate had watched the fire and made him take a break once in a while to get something to eat. All the food he had gathered that morning had been eaten by now and if they wanted some more they should get it before it was going to be dark.

Dutchy was sitting close by working on something which Kate couldn't figure out what it was for. Before she could ask him he held it up in the air for her to see. "What's that?" Kate wondered. "It's a skirt. I hope it fits," he joked. "Well, I'll go into the bedroom and try it on," she joked as well.

Dutchy waited for Kate to come back out of their hut. She looked cute in her swimming costume and skirt. She didn't look at all like a navy officer anymore. "Great," he said when she made a turn in front of him. "Well it seems to fit you. Let's go to my friend the food stall owner and ask him if this will do for his dress up dinner."

"Let's put our belongings inside before we go," she said. She walked to the fire and got the gold bar, the camera and their wetsuits and put them in the hut. "Can you lock up darling?" she heard Dutchy ask. Kate stuck her head around the corner and gave him a warning look but didn't say anything.

Dutchy showed where he had found the fruit earlier that day but now they were together he wanted to explore some more. Kate was following him but they had stopped talking. They had to look out where to place their feet since they were walking barefoot. Suddenly he saw something between the trees. He turned around and without saying anything showed her what he saw.

"What's Lara doing here?" Kate whispered. Dutchy shrugged. "Who's the other guy?" he whispered. Before Kate could say anything Lara stood up but was pushed roughly back into her seat by the guy. "Not a friend I gather," Kate answered seeing that Lara was tied at the wrists.

Dutchy looked around to see if there were any other people near the camp but he couldn't see anything. "Come," he whispered while he moved in closer. Kate understood what he wanted to do and followed him. With the two of them they could overpower this guy and liberate Lara.

The guy was on his knees checking his food on the fire when Kate and Dutchy formed a tactical line behind him. "Just relax sir, don't move, don't say anything," Kate said, holding up a stick as a weapon. The guy was surprised and got up. "On your knees," Dutchy said while pushing him back down. "Oh, you don't like that?" he added when the man let out a groan. "You don't mind doing it to others," he said sarcastically.

Kate walked towards Lara and untied the rope. She walked back to Dutchy and handed it to him. "If they're here there must be a boat nearby. We'll tie him up and he can show us where it is," she ordered. They had just tied the man when he got a smile on his face. She wanted to ask him what was so funny when someone said: "What's happening here?" Kate and Dutchy turned around and saw three guys with guns in their hands. "Surprise," a brown haired man said.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Dutchy opened his eyes. The back of his head was aching but when he tried to scratch it he realized his hands were tied together. Even though it was almost impossible he reached for the back of his head anyway. "Dylan, you're awake," he heard Kate say. "Are you OK?" she added. Dutchy had to turn his whole body to see where she was. Kate was tied up as well and so was Lara. "I'm fine," he answered Kate's question. "Are you and what happened?" he asked in return. He tried to remember but his memory was a blank.

Kate was glad Dutchy seemed fine. The three guys, who had shown up about half an hour ago, hit Duchy over his head. They must have thought it was smarter to knock out the big guy. She had struggled the most she could but three against one was too much. They had tied her up roughly and had done the same with Lara.

"I'm fine," Kate answered. It wasn't completely true. The guys had pushed and shoved her quite a bit and for a while she was scared they would do even worse but the brown haired guy, Carl Strauss, had decided there wasn't time for _that_. She wouldn't tell him that. Kate didn't know what Dutchy would do to the guys if he knew so instead she tried to tell him what had happened in the past few minutes. "You've been out for a while. The guy who hit you left with one of the others, I don't know where to," she whispered before she turned to Lara. "We know about the gold," she said in a low voice. Lara gave her an apologetic look. "Martin always was greedy. He wasn't happy with our share," she said.

Dutchy looked around to analyze the situation. The two guards were having a private discussion and were only looking at their prisoners once in a while. "So he stole from them and you hid the gold on your yacht?" he quickly asked Lara. Lara looked down to the ground and whispered: "That's why Martin didn't want me to mayday during the storm. They would have found us."

Kate listened to Lara's confession which now all made sense. "Do you think Martin is still alive?" she asked her but before Lara could answer one of the guards noticed them talking and stood up. "No talking," he stated. Then he looked at Dutchy and then at Kate. "Ah, look girlie. Your boyfriend finished his beauty sleep," he smiled sarcastically. "Just don't make me mad or he'll sleep for much longer," he threatened.

Kate or Dutchy didn't dare to say anything knowing full well they would carry out their threat. Kate wondered where the other two had gone. They were looking for the gold, she got that much, but were Dutchy and she really that unlucky to end up being stuck on the same island? Did that mean Martin Strauss would be around as well?

Dutchy had the urge to scratch the back of his head again. The guy had probably hit him there and caused a wound. He did have a splitting headache. "You've got some blood dripping from a wound on your head," Kate whispered as low as she could. Too bad the guy who had just warned them overheard her and pulled her up. He was about to hit her in her face when Carl Strauss reappeared. "What are you doing idiot?" he yelled. "We found it. We need her to do the carrying so if you want to hit her make sure she's still capable of working or you'll end up doing the hard work yourself," he said angrily.

The guy pushed Kate back to the ground and looked happily at his friend. "You found it?" he asked. "Finally!" He totally forgot what he had wanted to do to his prisoner and instead started walking around like a headless chicken until Martin Strauss grabbed him at his arm. "Can you stop, you mongrel. We need to get organized. Break up the camp and get moving," he ordered.

Within fifteen minutes the tents were taken down. Kate was given a big duffle bag to carry which blocked her view but she couldn't do anything about it since her hands were still tied together. Dutchy and Lara were also given a bag and while Carl lead the way, each of the prisoners were given a personal guard.

"Move it," one of the guards said to Dutchy. He poked him with his gun to show Dutchy he was serious. "Don't make it so hard on yourself mate," the guard said again. Dutchy growled. They had to walk pretty fast and he couldn't see where to place his feet. Sticks and rocks were poking him endlessly. He didn't really care about himself, he was more concerned about Kate who was struggling with her bag and kept hitting rocks on her path. She was trying to hide it but Dutchy could see she was about to cry.

Kate dropped her bag on the ground and kneeled next to it. Her feet were killing her and the bag was heavy. She needed a rest but as soon as she stopped her guard picked her up from the ground. "Who said you were allowed to stop?" he barked at her. Suddenly he looked at her like her recognized her. "Hey Carl, Isn't she the woman from the boat shed?" he wondered.

Kate recognized the guy too. She had hit him in the face. "Who cares?" Carl asked. "Well, she comes in handy. I mean besides carrying and stuff. We can use her to get our goody bags into the country," he said excitedly. "Geez, I hadn't recognized you out of your ugly uniform babe," he said to Kate. "Why do you think we haven't killed them? Now, can you get her up and going? I want to go home," Carl said annoyed.

The group reached the beach where a speedboat floated in waves. Dutchy felt the sand underneath his feet which felt great. He dropped his bag and quickly looked at Kate, who had just dropped her bag. She was exhausted and probably thirsty just like he was. If he could come any closer he might untie her. Step by step he attempted to reach Kate but before he reached her he got a shove in his back. "Don't even think about it," Carl said.

Dutchy sighed. He felt guilty for the whole situation he had gotten Kate into. Couldn't he do anything to get it right? "We got your stuff to the beach. If you want us to survive this you better give us some water," Dutchy said which earned him another shove. "Don't tell me what to do. You and your girlfriend aren't ready yet. You two come with me," Carl ordered. "You keep that no good of a sister-in-law of mine tied up until we come back," he ordered the others around.

Dutchy and Kate walked a little bit back into the wilderness when they were suddenly stopped by Carl. Many gold bars were stashed hidden behind some ferns. Dutchy had never seen so much gold in his life. The best thing to do was to follow orders from these bad guys but it felt so wrong to help them get away with so much money that didn't belong to them. He had to do something to stop it and since they only had one guard this could be their only chance.

"Start bringing the gold to the boat," Carl ordered but Dutchy didn't move. "Move," Carl yelled. Kate started moving towards the gold, which was stacked in big bags, and looked questioningly at him. "How do you expect us to carry those if our hands are tied together?" Dutchy dared Carl.

For a second nothing happened but then Carl moved to Kate and cut the rope around her wrist. Dutchy eyed Kate to see if she understood what he had planned but he didn't know for sure if she did before Carl moved to him and cut his rope as well. Dutchy didn't wait a second and hit Carl hard in his face. Kate tried to get his gun but Carl was too fast and without a warning he shot at Dutchy.

Kate saw how Dutchy fell to the ground holding on to his side. She fell to her knees and protectively draped her body over his. "Dylan you have to get up and get to the beach," she said to him, her voice faltering. "Please, he needs medical help," she said to Carl who was a bit shocked by this situation.

"Mick, bring me Lara," Carl yelled to one of the guys at the beach. Nothing happened and since there was no other option he picked up one of the handles of a gold bag. "Pick up the other handle and start moving," he said while pointing the gun at her head. Kate looked at Dutchy and wanted to protest but he grabbed her arm. "Do it, don't get yourself shot," he stammered. Kate got up and picked up the bag and started bringing it to the beach.

Lara was untied and had to help Kate bring the bags of gold to the beach. Every time she came past Dutchy she looked at him sorrowfully but there wasn't anything she could do for him. Kate did see he was crawling towards the beach and so did Carl, but he didn't pay much attention to it. Dutchy was in no fit state to do anything to stop so he just let him be.

Kate put the last bag into the speedboat when suddenly a RHIB full of navy personnel appeared. Carl saw it too and pulled Lara back on the beach before he started shooting at the RHIB. Kate didn't recognize anyone in the RHIB and there wasn't time to give them a good look because she needed to hide. She ducked down behind the speedboat and saw that the guys on the beach were retreating while one of the navy guys yelled: "Hold your fire."

Carl shoved Lara down on the beach and came back towards Kate. She saw it and quickly climbed into the speedboat where she laid down on the ground and covered her head. If he wanted her to come back to the beach he would have to fight her. Carl didn't get a chance to come closer to her because the navy guys aimed their guns at him. "Put the gun down!" the navy guy yelled from the RHIB.

"Are you in position?" the guy in the RHIB asked which created some confusion. "Why should I? I'm holding all the cards," Carl yelled. "No you're not," someone from behind said to him. Carl turned around and fired. His friends started shooting as well until one of them was shot in his chest. "Get down!" a navy guy ordered him. "OK, OK," Carl said while he held his gun up in the air. The guys from the RHIB jumped on the beach. "Get on your knees. Face down to the ground," they yelled. "Drop the gun," a navy guy yelled at Carl.

The shooting had stopped and Kate thought it was safe to come back up. There wasn't much space with all the bags. Kate held on to the helm before she got back on her feet. "There's one in the speedboat too," a navy guy said when he saw her appear. He jumped in the boat and pointed his gun against her. "Get back down," he barked at her. "I'm navy, please, don't shoot, I'm navy," Kate said while she got back on the floor.

The guy smirked and put straps around her wrists he pulled her up and let her get out of the speedboat. "Please, I'm a navy officer," Kate said again but now one of her original guards nodded and said: "Yes, I'm a navy officer too." The navy guy started to laugh and shook his head. "I didn't know our officers wore such nice uniforms," he smirked while he pointed at her banana leave skirt. "Now move over to the others," he ordered.

"X, look!" one of the navy guys said while he pointed into the direction of the trees. The guy who was the XO walked to that place and suddenly had a worried look on his face. "Petty officer Stuart get the stretcher," he ordered.

Kate tried to see what was going on when she saw a glimpse of Dutchy. She wanted to get closer to him but was roughly put back down by her new guard. "Oh god, it's Dutchy," one of the navy guys said. Angrily he turned around to the prisoners and asked: "What have you done to him?" Carl very quickly pointed at Kate and said: "She shot him."

Petty officer Stuart slapped Dutchy at his face. "Come on Dutchy stay with us," he said. "You're safe now. We're going to take you to the HMAS Newcastle and bring you back to port. Dutchy hang in there," he said worriedly. Dutchy nodded before he was lifted on a stretcher. While they carried him towards the RHIB he saw Kate on the ground with her hands tied behind her back. "Her," Dutchy stammered while he pointed at her. "Don't talk Dutchy. We already know she shot you. We'll take care of her," Stuart said. Dutchy wanted to say no but he didn't have the strength to do anything before he passed out.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Petty officer Rick Stuart walked into the medical room of HMAS Newcastle. He wanted to check on his old mate Dutchy. Before Dutchy was reposted to a patrol boat they had shared a cabin and were best friends. Rick was surprised to find Dutchy on the island with the gold thieves. They had spotted a boat floating in the water on their way back to Cairns. When they had contacted Navcom about it they were tasked to search the island since the nearest patrol boat was engaged in another search. Not to alert anyone on the island they had dropped a few crewmembers on one side of it. They had found a primitive hut, some wetsuits, personal belongings and a gold bar. The gold turned out to be stolen.

"How is he doing?" Rick asked lieutenant Rogers, the medical officer on board. "He has a bullet wound to the abdomen. I think Dutchy is lucky because the bullet missed all vital organs. He has lost considerable amounts of blood and I've given him some fluids which should help him until we're back in port. He'll live," the officer answered.

Rick looked at Dutchy and again wondered how he had ended up on the island. He probably built the hut they had found but if so, he hadn't been alone, there were two wetsuits and by the size of one it belonged to a woman. Still there were many questions he wanted to ask his friend. He sat down next to the battered body, not knowing what to do or say.

"Hey," a raspy voice said. Rick looked up and saw Dutchy, looking around. "You're on the HMAS Newcastle mate," he informed him. "You've been shot by gold thieves. How did you end up on that island?" Rick asked. Dutchy didn't answer him but kept looking around. "Kate?" he said.

Rick gave him a questioning look. They had apprehended two women together with the men. One had been held under gun point and the other one had, supposedly, shot Dutchy. They were interrogating that woman right now, quite unsuccessfully he had to add. Was one of the women Kate? "Who's Kate?" he asked Dutchy.

Dutchy didn't understand why Kate wasn't with him in this room. He tried to remember the last time he had seen her but he couldn't come up with an answer. "Dutchy, who's Kate? Was she with you on the island?" Rick asked him. Dutchy frowned. An island? Yes, he was on an island and Kate was with him. "Kate McGr— McGrruah— McGregffff—" he tried to say. It irritated him that he wasn't able to say her name. One more time he tried to look around to see if she was in the same room but Rick gave him a worried look and said: "Whoever she is, she isn't here mate. Was she with you on the island?"

Lieutenant Rogers walked towards his patient who was very much in distress right now. His heart rate was going crazy and he had closed his eyes while panting heavily. "Petty officer Stuart, he needs rest right now," he said while he stood next to his colleague. Rick nodded and wanted to stand up when Dutchy opened his eyes again. "Rick," Dutchy sighed. "Get Kate."

Rick sat down again and held on to Dutchy's arm. "I don't know who Kate is. Was she on the island with you?" he asked again. "Petty officer Stuart," lieutenant Rogers said sternly, indicating it was time to leave. "Yes, Kate," Dutchy answered. Rick nodded. One of the women had to be Kate. "What does she look like?" he asked.

Dutchy suddenly realized Kate wasn't with him in this room. They must have taken her into custody with the others. If so, she was in trouble and he had to do something about it before something bad would happen to her. With his last energy he sat up and stammered: "Blonde…. tiny…. good…. looking." Rick padded his friend's hand before he stormed out of the room and on his way to the wardroom where they had taken the blonde woman.

Kate was sat down on a chair while lieutenant Moore was bending over her. "Just tell us why you shot Petty officer Mulholland," he yelled at her. Kate was tired. Tired of explaining she hadn't shot Dutchy or explaining she wasn't part of the gang who had stolen the gold but most of all tired of the whole situation. Instead of answering she sighed and looked at her sore feet. They had given her something else to wear besides her swimsuit. Her feet were now covered in some socks which were probably washed with sand. They were very itchy. She had to put up with the not completely fitting uniform and itchy socks or the irritating officer until they were back in port. Back in Cairns would be the people who could identify her properly. "We won't let you go until you tell us," the officer yelled at her.

Kate looked up and shrugged. "I didn't shoot him, honestly. They made me carry the gold to the boat," she answered knowing they wouldn't believe her. The lieutenant sat down next to her and exhaled loudly. "Listen. We know you're part of them," he said in a normal voice. "We found your mobile phone, we found your wetsuit and camera," he continued. "And you know how we know it's yours?" he asked a bit more aggressively. "Because you're in one of the shots!" he answered his own question. "If that was all we found it wouldn't be so bad for you but we found a gold bar hidden in your homemade hut. I gather you stole from the others. If they made you carry the gold it's because they found out you're a traitor," he yelled.

"Come on, tell us, what did petty officer Mulholland do to you to earn a bullet?" the lieutenant asked again. They didn't want to hear the truth, only their version of the truth. Instead of trying to rid herself of the blame, she answered every next question with the same response: "6892547, lieutenant Kate McGregor, XO, HMAS Hammersley." 

Rick Stuart opened the door to the wardroom and heard the blonde woman say: "… Kate McGregor, XO, HMAS Hammersley." Lieutenant Moore hit his flat hand on the table and stared straight in her eyes. "Could you cut the crap!" he said really agitated. Rick was still standing at the door and suddenly realized what he just heard the woman say. "McGregor?" he thought out loud. "Oh god, McGregor! That's what Dutchy tried to say," he said while he walked to the lieutenant and tapped him on his shoulder. "Sir, I think she's telling the truth. Dutchy described Kate as a blonde, tiny and —" for a second he paused, not knowing if he should say the other word when the woman in question was in the room. "What are you talking about?" the lieutenant asked.

Rick looked at the blonde woman who gave him a hopeful look. "Dutchy," he began. "He was talking about a woman who was with him on the island. He called her Kate but couldn't get through to her surname," he explained. The lieutenant shrugged. "Dutchy is wounded probably delirious. I wouldn't believe everything he says right now," he said. "Sir, she does say her name is Kate which is the name Dutchy said and she fits his description," Rick said. "Why don't we check her details with Navcom?" Rick suggested. Lieutenant Moore shrugged. "Fine. I'll go and check it out. She's not giving us any helpful answers anyway," he said before he walked out of the wardroom.

While the lieutenant was away the other guy was guarding Kate. She was glad it was him since he was believing her and he had brought it to the lieutenant's attention to go and check her details. It wouldn't be long now before they would finally untie the strips around her wrists and treat a bit more respectfully. Kate looked at the guy and wondered what the word was which he didn't wanted to say earlier. What had Dutchy said to him about her?

There were a few silent minutes before the door opened again but this time not only lieutenant Moore entered but also the CO entered the wardroom. "Rick, cut her free," he ordered. He stood in front of Kate while the straps were removed and then he extended his hand. "I'm so sorry lieutenant. I'm sorry it took my men so long to realize who you are. I'm commander Callum, captain of this ship," he apologized. Kate only nodded and caressed her wrists. "Commander White was pleased to hear that you are still alive. I told her you would give her a call before we reach port but is there anyone else you want to contact?" he enquired. Kate shook her head. "No, I'd like to see how Dutchy is doing," she answered. "Of course," the commander said. "Rick, take lieutenant McGregor to the medical ward," he ordered.

Kate walked into the medical ward and saw Dutchy in a bed, hooked up to some IV lines. The medical officer was fixing one of the IV's. "Lieutenant Rogers this is lieutenant Kate McGregor," Rick introduced her. Lieutenant Rogers nodded and continued his work. "How's the patient?" Kate asked him. The officer gave her a quick look and sighed. "Well, the bleeding stopped. He'll get over it. He's strong," he answered. Kate was glad to hear it and smiled. "Can I talk to him?" she wanted to know. "Sure," the medical officer said. "I just pumped him full of pethadine so he might not make much sense," he said while he made some space for her at Dutchy's bed.

"Hello, how are you feeling?" she said to Dutchy, not knowing what else to say with others around. Dutchy gave her a cheesy grin in return. "Hey," he said, sounding as if he was stoned. "God, I'm floating." Kate laughed. Dutchy sounded funny but she was glad she saw him there being alive. "That's great," she said looking towards the medical officer to see if he was paying attention to what either she or Dutchy said. He was writing down something on a clipboard so she turned her attention back to Dutchy.

Kate wanted to tell him how glad she was he was still alive or how glad she was they were finally rescued but he was just staring at her with this weird glance in his eyes. "You're an angel," he suddenly said. "Dutchy," she almost whispered before she looked at the medical officer again. Dutchy grabbed her hand and while he kissed it he said: "You're an amazing woman." Kate really started to feel a bit uncomfortable. What were the other two men going to think? She tried to get her hand back before anyone of them could see what Dutchy was doing.

"Pethadine ma'am," lieutenant Rogers chuckled. Kate smiled and looked at him for a second. "He won't remember a thing in the morning," the officer added. Kate hoped he was right and laughed when she felt how Dutchy put his other hand on hers before he let it slide up to her t-shirt. Before she could do anything about it he grabbed the material and pulled her towards his face.

Even though he was pumped full of pethadine he was still very strong and she couldn't get herself free without raising too much attention. "Come here," Dutchy slurred. He held her in an iron grip and smiled at her. "No, no," she whispered. "You need to stop big fella," she said hoping the two others weren't looking at them. "Angel, let me ki—" Dutchy said before pressing his soft lips against hers.

Kate closed her eyes and for a second she was in another world where she was alone with Dutchy. She pressed her own lips against his to intensify the moment and to enjoy the kiss. All the bottled up emotions from the past days, no, even months, came out in this one single kiss. She liked his firm lips pressed against hers and his strong muscled body underneath her. Kate opened her eyes again and realized where she was. She pulled her head back and finally managed to get up from Dutchy. She walked a few steps away from his bed to make sure he wouldn't grab her again. "Where're you goin?" Dutchy said sounding disappointed. Kate straightened her t-shirt and put a strand of hair behind her ear. "Uhm, I'm going to—going to uh— get a— cup of tea," she stammered.

Lieutenant Rogers had been working on a computer and closed the file before he turned around. "Petty officer Stuart will get you a brew. I need to give you a quick check up," he said to Kate. Without repeating anything the other officer started moving and left the ward. "I'm fine," Kate said trying to hide the flustered look on her face. "I don't need a check up," she protested. Lieutenant Rogers gave her a friendly smile and let her sit down on an empty bed. "It wasn't a question," he said. "They just informed me about your adventures of the past two days. You've been through some rough physical and emotional moments. We need to make sure you're OK."

Kate let the medical officer do his job and when he was done she decided to take him up on his offer to get some rest in his ward. Now she knew Dutchy was safe and that they were on their way home she could surrender to the tiredness. It didn't take her long to fall asleep.

Mike was waiting at the wharf together with Maxine. She had told him what she knew which was that Dutchy was shot, but not in any real danger, and that Kate seemed fine under the circumstances. Mike saw how two sailors carried the stretcher with Dutchy on it. They were followed by the medical officer who was offering his help to a frail body, wrapped in a blanket. It took Mike a while to realize it was Kate underneath the blanket. She looked pale and almost had her head leaning against the medical officer.

"I thought you said she was fine," Mike said accusingly to Maxine. She padded his shoulder and shook her head. "She has gone through a great ordeal Mike. They're both going to Barry General Hospital for observation and necessary medical attention. When I called Newcastle half an hour ago they told me Kate was asleep. I let you come to see for yourself that they're alive but they need rest," Maxine told him.

Mike nodded. Of course they needed rest. Kate was about to reach the end of the gangway when he walked towards her to take over from the lieutenant who was helping her but instead of greeting him she had her eyes fixed on the body on the stretcher. "Kate," he said while wanting to guide her to the ambulance. She gave him a quick glance and had something of a smile on her face before she looked at Dutchy again. They had reached the ambulance and Mike helped Kate climb into it. The medic nodded in acknowledgement before he closed the hatch. There was nothing else to do for Mike than seeing the ambulance drive off.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Kate hadn't slept one bit in hospital and now she had to wait until the doctor would come around to check on her. She wanted him to hurry up and tell her it was alright to go home. There was nothing wrong with her, why couldn't doctors just believe her? If she had known they would keep her overnight she would have never come to hospital in the first place. All she wanted was to go home, have a good night's sleep and then go back to work. Kate looked at the clock above the door again. It had been fifteen minutes since the nurse had told her about the doctor coming to check on her. It irritated her so instead of staying in bed and wait she swung her legs over the edge and decided to look for the doctor herself.

Kate got as far as the door of her room before she realized what she was wearing. Bomber had brought her some personal things the night before but she hadn't taken much time to give it a good look and now Kate was wearing the most embarrassing nightgown she owned which she should have thrown out a long time ago. Not only the shirt itself was embarrassing but also the fact that it had shrunken and the length of it couldn't be called decent anymore. When she was given the choice what to wear last night, her own shirt or a hospital gown, Kate didn't have to think twice what to choose.

Looking for the doctor would maybe not the best thing to do, dressed like this, but waiting any longer for a doctor she didn't really need was not something she wanted to do either. Kate looked at her uninviting bed and decided she was definitely not going to rest any minute longer. She wanted to be in control again, being the XO. One thing she needed to do as an XO was check on her crewmembers and there was one in hospital right down the hallway. Softly she opened the door and stuck her head out to see if there was anyone in the hallway who could see her in her short nightgown. It was quiet and Kate ran as fast as she could to Dutchy's room.

Dutchy was still sleeping but he looked peaceful. Kate sat down next to his bed and looked at the man she had come to appreciate a lot more in the past few days. There were still so many more things she could learn about him. Before this whole adventure she wasn't really interested in him and now? Now she wanted to know everything about him. Kate looked at his face and more particularly at his lips. The medical officer of the Newcastle had said he wouldn't remember a thing of what he had said and done but she still could. Without realizing it she touched her own lips where he had pressed his soft but firm lips. She reached out to touch his lips, just quickly, to feel them one more time.

Dutchy had been dreaming but he felt something on his lips. He didn't want anyone to touch them, not after yesterday. His mind wasn't very clear but he could remember the kiss he had given Kate. He opened his eyes to see her sitting next to his bed. Was he dreaming after all? Had he only kissed her in his dream? When he turned his head to face her she smiled at him but there was something different about her. Suddenly Dutchy was completely awake. He _had_ kissed Kate the day before and she was sitting wearing something—well, what _was_ she wearing? It definitely wasn't the navy uniform she had worn the day before.

"Nice shirt you're wearing Kate. Is that an invitation?" he said pointing at the text on her hot pink shirt. Kate gave him a shocked look. "What?" she asked a bit puzzled. "Be my honey bunny," Dutchy read out loud while Kate looked down at the picture on her shirt. "Oh," she smiled while she touched it. "It's a—," she tried to say but nothing more came out. Dutchy laughed as well but then he saw the red circles on her wrists and stopped abruptly. "They treated you badly," he said almost in a whisper.

Dutchy suddenly looked so hurt and while she tried to make eye contact he tried to avoid it as much as he could. "Is there something wrong?" Kate asked worriedly. "Dylan, talk to me. If you think that this is your fault, it's not," touching her own wrists, trying to convince him. He shrugged and touched her wrists too. "Not?" he asked. "No," Kate answered before he could say anything else. "Why do you think that? You got hurt yourself. You've been shot," Kate said.

Dutchy looked away again and thought back on all the moments he had jeopardized Kate's life in the past forty-eight hours. "It was my decision to go swimming and you almost drowned and when we were rescued I was unable to let my old friends know you're not the bad guy. They tied you up again and lieutenant Moore—I know him—he isn't the most diplomatic guy," he summed up why he felt so guilty.

Kate frantically shook her head and took his hand in hers. "You listen Dylan and listen well. It was your _idea_ to go swimming but you didn't _make_ me swim and for the drowning part, I've got to thank you for saving my life. Later on it was you who was shot and in danger and still you manage to make your old friends realize who I was. If it wasn't for you they would have kept me tied up and questioned me all the way back to port. Not everything that happened to me is your fault!" she said.

Kate smiled reassuringly at Dutchy when he turned his head towards her. "I don't know how you did it. I mean you were drugged to the eyeballs when I arrived at the medical ward," Kate laughed. Dutchy laughed as well, remembering that moment. "I was floating in and out of a very strange but nice dream," he chuckled. "You were certainly floating. You remember the dream?" she asked. Dutchy nodded. "I don't remember much but I—" he stopped and looked at Kate. "I dreamed that we were flying or something and the plane made an unexpected move. I had to rescue you from falling and hold on to you. Well and then we—" he stopped, feeling embarrassed.

"That wasn't a dream," Kate giggled. "Although we weren't in a plane," she added. Dutchy looked at her not knowing if he should laugh or hide. "Oh," he sighed. "Should I apologize for what happened?" he asked. Dutchy expected her to scold him for what he had done but Kate shook her head and said: "It wasn't too bad." He saw the twinkle in her eyes and knew she was teasing him. "Not too bad?" he asked trying to sound insulted. "Yeah," she answered. "It was too short to be spectacular but it wasn't too bad."

Dutchy thought for a moment before he replied. If she was playing mind games to get him all confused it worked. Kate was his XO and she could never admit she liked being kissed by him but he hadn't kissed his XO he had kissed a woman he had been stuck with on an island. Was her answer a serious one and had she really liked the kiss or was she joking and didn't mean what she was saying. "Should I try again and make it longer this time?" he quietly asked to see what kind of reaction he would get. He saw Kate blush and looking down before she answered: "Maybe you should."

What was she doing? They were teasing each other but what if he would seriously kiss her again and she would like it as much as the previous kiss? It couldn't happen. Why had she let that last sentence slip out like that? She didn't dare to look at him or say something, scared she would do or say something they would regret. Kate hated herself for giving him the idea he had a chance.

The door opened and a nurse walked in. "I should have known you would be here," she said looking at Kate. "You know you're not supposed to leave your room," she continued accusingly but then she smiled and added more friendly: "You've got a visitor."

Kate stood up and was about to follow the nurse when she turned around and looked at Dutchy. "I'll come back later and we'll talk then, OK?" she said. Dutchy nodded. He wanted to say something but all he could do was look at Kate's clothes. If he had thought the shirt was something weird for her to wear he had to reconsider. Underneath her pink night shirt she wore pink underwear with stripes and cute pink lace around the edges. He chuckled but hid it behind his hand. She heard him and turned around sharply. "What are you laughing at this time?" she asked. "Nothing," he grinned. She looked at him with a raised eyebrow, not really believing him. "Come on Kate" he laughed, "I just hadn't thought you'd be someone to wear undies as outrageous as that!" "Well" Kate started, "It's not like anyone ever get's to see them underneath my uniform." Dutchy nearly choked on that sentence, not believing what she had just said. "Is that another invitation?" he asked, his voice suddenly a lot heavier than it was before. "Maybe…." Kate said softly.

For a moment she stood there silently staring at him, the same way he was staring at her. Her hands were unconsciously trying to keep the hem of her nightshirt at a decent level. Dutchy suddenly turned serious again, knowing he had possibly crossed all lines of decent behaviour towards his commanding officer. "I am sorry Kate, " he suddenly said, "I shouldn't have said all these things about your nightwear and us kissing. It isn't appropriate, you're my commanding officer. We were just joking, weren't we? About the kissing?" he explained himself. Kate nodded. "Yeah, don't worry," she said before she left the room to join the nurse who was impatiently waiting for her in the hallway.

Kate sighed. They had been joking although it had changed into something else. The nurse had saved them from an embarrassing silence but now she had left his room she wanted to go back and kiss him, tell him she wasn't joking. Kate sighed again and tried to think who her visitor could be. The visiting hours wouldn't start for another hour and by then she was not going to be a patient anymore, at least that was her plan. It could be Maxine although if she wanted to check up on her condition she would probably make a simple phone call. Maybe it was the doctor although the nurse would have said just that. As fast as she could she walked towards her room.

Just before she entered the room she pulled her shirt down as far as she could, not to embarrass the person who would be visiting her. Inside Kate saw a man in his whites facing her bed. "Mike," she said wondering what he was doing there at this time of the day. He turned around and gave her a wonderful smile. "Ah, the nurse found you," he joked. Kate nodded and quickly sneaked back into her bed. Mike didn't have to see what she was wearing. With the blanket pulled up all the way to her chin she looked at Mike again. "I wasn't lost," she said.

Mike pulled up a chair and sat down next to Kate's bed. He wouldn't say it out loud but she looked terrible. She had dark circles under her eyes and she had some bruises in her face and on her arms. She was covering up her full body and he wondered if she did that because she didn't want him to see her battered body or because of the shirt she was wearing. "I remember the shirt," he said hoping Kate wouldn't mind him talking about it. "You do?" she asked in disbelieve. "I think I even gave it to you. You still look good in it," he praised her. Kate pulled the blanket up even more feeling totally embarrassed now. "I don't remember," she said hoping he would take the hint to talk about something else.

There was a strange silence before Mike started talking. "How are you feeling? Did you get some rest?" he asked trying to get the conversation going again. "Fine and no" was her short answer. "When will they let you out of here?" he asked. Kate looked up and shrugged. "How should I know. Why don't you start looking for the doctor who _does_ seem to be lost." Kate joked. "I don't like hospitals, never sleep well when they keep me overnight. I'm hoping the doctor will let me go home today," Kate explained a bit further. "You didn't look so well yesterday," Mike said, wanting her to know he was still a bit concerned. Kate shrugged. "Yesterday they had just woken me up when you saw me. I was groggy," she explained.

Kate looked at Mike and wondered why he was in his whites or why he had come to visit her outside of visiting hours in the first place. He saw her questioning look and smiled sheepishly. "I need to go to Navcom," he said. "Navcom? The Hammersley won't sail out just yet, will it? I'm sure I will go home today. Could you stall them until tomorrow?" Kate asked him. Mike saw Kate, about to jump out of bed and get dressed to come along. "No! the Hammersley will stay in port until the crew is complete again. It's me they want at Navcom," he quickly said hoping Kate would stay in bed.

Kate fell back into her pillows and let out a relieved sigh. "Why?" she wanted to know. Mike grinned. "I'm in trouble. I went out to search for you after Maxine had told me to stay in port," he told her. Kate was shocked to hear what he had done and more about the pride she could hear in his words. "Why did you do that?" she asked. "Well," Mike shrugged. "You were lost at sea and I couldn't sit around and just do paperwork. Charge, Swain and I plotted our own search area and took out a private boat. Mind you, we weren't searching in the right area but at least I can say I did something."

Kate shook her head. "You're a mad man, Mike Flynn!" she chuckled. "Go and see Knocker and get your reprimand over and done with. Just make sure you're not kept in port too long. I want to go back to work as soon as I'm out of this place," Kate ordered him. Mike smiled and patted her hand. "I will and if I'll see the doctor on my way out I'll tell him to let you go home. You're way to bossy to be kept here," he teased her.

Mike stood up and walked to the door. "Shall I pick you up after my reprimand?" he asked her. "That is if Maxine won't let me clean the heads at Navcom with a toothbrush and I'm unable to come back in time," he added with a laugh. Kate let out a loud burst of laughter. "Sure. If I had a mobile I would call you," she said. "I'll find a way to let you know when to come and pick me up," she added more seriously. Mike smiled. "OK. I'll get some nice salads and some wine for tonight," he said. While he walked out of the hospital room he heard Kate say: "I'll hope Maxine will give you time to do that!"

Like Kate had thought she was discharged not long after Mike had left. She changed into the summer dress Bomber had brought and decided to go check on Dutchy before she would give Mike a call. With her bag swung over her shoulder she walked towards his room where she saw him sitting in his bed. He looked a lot better than he had done that morning but when she wanted to walk in she saw the doctor walking back to his bed still drying his hands after he had washed them. "The wound is healing nicely and it all looks good. What you really need, and most of all your body, is rest. I will be able to let you go home if I know you will take it easy the next couple of days. And if there is someone at home to take care of you." the doctor said.

Dutchy didn't answer him straight away and Kate knew his answer was a negative one. This wasn't fair on him. She stepped inside the room and cleared her throat. "I could do that," she offered. The doctor didn't ask for any details and just nodded in agreement. "I will let you go home if you accept the lady's offer," he said while signing some papers. Dutchy gave Kate a grateful look and nodded. "Thank you," he said. The doctor hung his charts on the end of his bed and looked from Kate to Dutchy and back. "Remember you need your rest as well lieutenant McGregor," he warned her. "Don't worry doc," she said. "We'll just watch some movies, and I'll tuck our patient in nice and early before camping out on his sofa myself."

The doctor agreed to this proposal and while Dutchy changed, Kate waited outside the room. Suddenly she remembered her promise to Mike. She had to call him to let him know he didn't have to come after all. She walked to the desk and asked if she could use the phone. While she waited for Mike to pick up she hoped he wouldn't mind. "Mike," she said when she heard him. "They let me out but you don't have to pick me up. I'm going to stay at Dutchy's place tonight. The doctor wouldn't let him get out if he didn't have someone to help him," she apologized. Kate listened to what Mike replied. "Oh, you already bought my favourite food? Oh, I'm so sorry Mike," she said.

Dutchy saw Kate standing at the nurses desk and walked towards her. "Hey my saviour," he joked. She turned around and he saw she had the phone pressed against her ear. "Dutchy is here. I'm really sorry. You can cook for me some other time OK?" she asked the person on the phone. She gave the phone back to the nurse and thanked her for using it before she turned to him. "I called for a taxi. It'll be here in about ten minutes," she informed him. Dutchy smiled and linked his arm with hers. "Let's go home," he said invitingly. "And let's watch some movies," he added. While they left the hospital Kate laughed and said: "I think I know which movie we're going to see tonight."


End file.
